The first thing you need to do is make sure you are safe. Domestic violence victims are most likely to be attacked when they leave the abuser and/or when they seek legal help. The following article has information on how to create a Security plan for victims of domestic violence. The plan can increase your safety and prepare you in advance for violence that may happen in the future. You don't have control over your partner's violence, but you do have a choice about how to respond, and how best to get you and your loved ones to safety.

You are not alone. There are several domestic violence agencies throughout the state that can help you through this process. You can also click on Get Legal Help and visit the Victims of Crime Portal.  

Before taking action, call the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline (877) 863-6338. It is multilingual, confidential, and available 24/7. You can also call your local domestic violence agency. These organizations can help you understand your options. They can also tell you what to expect if you decide to go to court. 

To get an Order of Protection, you must file court papers and talk to a judge.

You will need to fill out these forms to ask for an Order of Protection:

• Petition for Order of Protection: gives the court information needed to decide if you can get an Order of Protection. This petition will include specific remedies (what you are asking for) and the allegations of abuse (why you are requesting the Order of Protection). 
• Order of Protection: There are two kinds of Orders. You can ask for one or both.
  • An Emergency Order of Protection gives protection up to three weeks. The court can grant this without the abuser knowing about your petition.
  • A Plenary Order of Protection gives protection up to two years. The court can grant this once the abuser knows about your petition and has the opportunity to appear.
• Summons: gives the sheriff information to deliver the petition and Order of Protection, if granted, to the abuser.

Use the Order of Protection program to fill out your forms. After your forms are ready, sign them and make three extra copies of each form.  All Illinois counties will accept both online and in-person petitions.

Your petition tells the judge what you are asking for and why. You must write about the abuse you experienced. Include as many details as you can remember. The judge will use the information in your petition to decide whether to give you the order.

Include in the description of the abuse:

• What the abuser did and said,
• The dates and time of day of the abuse (if you do not remember, then give an estimate),
• Where the abuse happened,
• Who saw or heard the abuse. Be sure to mention if your children were there,
• If you were hurt by the abuse,
• If the police were called,
• How the abuse made you feel, and
• If there was anything that stopped you from coming to court sooner.

Make sure to include details about what has happened recently that made you feel like you need an order.

If you believe giving your home address will put you or any people you live with at a risk of abuse, you do not have to put your address on your court papers. You do have to put an address where you can receive mail. You can use a P.O. Box, work address, or the address of a family member or friend that the abuser knows.

Now that you have filled out your forms, take one of the following actions:

• File the forms with the circuit clerk at the courthouse in the county where you live, where the abuser lives, or where the events happened. The circuit clerk will not charge you a fee to file your forms. They will stamp and keep the original forms. Have the circuit clerk also stamp the extra copies of your forms. Keep a copy for your records.

Or

• E-file the forms. To e-file, choose a service provider. Some service providers are free while others charge a processing fee. Use that provider to file your forms electronically.

Learn more about ways to file for an Order of Protection.

The clerk will tell you which judge will hear your request for an Emergency Order of Protection. You will then go to their courtroom for your hearing.

The judge will hear your case for an Emergency Order without the abuser present. The judge will read your Petition for an Order of Protection. The judge may ask you questions about the abuser, about details of the abuse, and about your children. The judge will then decide if an Emergency Order is necessary. The Judge will then set a return date, three weeks or less after entry, to try to serve the abuser with the petition and Emergency Order of Protection. They will set a hearing date for a Plenary Order of Protection. A Plenary Order of Protection is a long-term order of protection.  

Cook County has a Domestic Violence Courthouse at 555 W. Harrison in Chicago. You can still show up in person to ask for an Order of Protection. The Courthouse is not currently offering childcare. From inside the Domestic Violence Courthouse, you can get help over the phone from an advocate by calling (708) 689-3422 or Ascend Justice at (312) 239-0413. They can help you fill out your court papers.

If you live in Cook County and do not want to go to the Domestic Violence Courthouse in person, you can file your court papers remotely and present your case via Zoom. You can do this on your own or you can get help. You can ask for help from an advocate by calling (708 ) 689-3422 or by calling Ascend Justice at (312) 239-0413 Monday - Friday, from 8:30AM - 5:00PM. Attorneys, advocates, and volunteers can help you fill out your court papers over the phone. They can also help you work with the court to do a video hearing via Zoom with a judge.

If you are filing from outside the Domestic Violence Courthouse, you can email your documents to [email protected]. This includes:

• Cover Sheet, 
• Summons,
• Information Sheet,
• Petition for Order of Protection,
• Emergency Order of Protection, and
• E-filing Exemption.

If you send your paperwork in before 3PM, you should receive instructions to present your case via Zoom that same day. Even if you receive an email back that says your case will be heard the next day, you should check your email until 5PM. You may still get instructions to appear in court via Zoom on the same day. 

If you already have a domestic relations case pending in Cook County against the abuser, your Order of Protection can be filed under that case number and combined with that case. 

If your petition is continued after your first day in court, you will have to return to court later. Unless your judge instructs you otherwise, Cook County courts will use Zoom for hearings for petitions for:

• Orders of Protection,
• Stalking No Contact Orders, and
• Civil No Contact Orders.

This is whether your case is in civil or criminal court. You do not need to come to the courthouse. However if you do not show up remotely for your Zoom hearing, your case may be dismissed. 

When a petition for an emergency protective order is granted, it is not made public until it has been served to the person against whom the emergency protective order was granted. This way, you can file for an emergency protective order without worrying the person you are filing against will retaliate.

The clerk will take the court documents to the sheriff's office, or ask you to do so. The sheriff will serve the petition and summons to the abuser, along with the Emergency Order of Protection, if one was granted. The sheriff's office keeps a copy of the order on file. 

The abuser must obey the order once they receive it from the sheriff (if they violate it, you can report the violation to the police). The sheriff won't charge you to deliver a copy of your court papers to the abuser. 

You will have a court date later where the judge will decide if you should be given a Plenary Order of Protection, which can last for up to two years. 

After you file the Order of Protection forms, you must go to a hearing. If you live in a county with a population above 250,000, you can request a remote hearing. The judge has discretion to approve or deny your request.

If you do not show up to the hearing, the judge may cancel the petition and you will have to start over. The judge may not be as willing to grant you a plenary order if you miss your first court date. 

Once the Respondent is served, they have an obligation to appear in Court. If they fail to appear, you may request a Plenary Order of Protection “by default”. If they do appear, the Court will give them the option to either agree to the Plenary Order of Protection or have a hearing on the allegations in your Petition Order of Protection.

At your final hearing, you and the abuser will be allowed to talk to the judge. You can bring witnesses or evidence to help you explain why you need a Plenary Order of Protection. Examples of evidence are:

• text messages,
• voicemails,
• medical records from an emergency room visit, or
• pictures showing abuse, like holes in a wall, or bruises. 

If you win the hearing, the judge will enter a Plenary Order of Protection. The end date will be listed on your Order of Protection. Read the order before you leave the courthouse. If something is wrong or missing, ask the clerk to correct the order before you leave.

Make a few copies of the order, and always keep one with you. Give a copy of the order to anyone who is named in and protected by the order. You can notify your local police precinct that you have the order. You can also leave copies of the order at:

• Your workplace,
• At your home,
• At your children's school or daycare,
• In your car, or
• With a neighbor.

The court will tell the sheriff about the order. This will be posted so law enforcement agencies in Illinois know that it must be given to your abuser.

The order can only be enforced after your abuser has been notified that there is an order.

If your abuser violates the order, you should call the police and make a police report. If you do not have a copy of the order with you, an officer can check their computer system and see if there is an order. You should keep a copy of the order with you at all times.

An abuser who disobeys an Order of Protection can be arrested and charged with a crime.